SPONTANEOUS MUSIC ENSEMBLE — Withdrawal 1966-7 (1997) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Sometimes, unearthed documents can leave you cold, even though the intellect appreciates the historical gap being filled. With Withdrawal, history doesn't matter and the "archival document" ends up superseding the legit material by the Spontaneous Music Ensemble. This is gold -- pure artistic beauty. The year is 1966. John Stevens' group records the soundtrack for a movie (now lost) by George Paul Solomos. The continuous performance is edited into two parts for a total of 30 minutes of music. A slow piece dominated by a glockenspiel leitmotif, "Withdrawal Soundtrack" features beautiful trumpet work by a Kenny Wheeler who was just beginning to play free music. Other players are Stevens (drums), Paul Rutherford (trombone), Trevor Watts (saxophone, oboe), Barry Guy (bass, limited to sustained drones), and a very young and discreet Evan Parker (saxophone). A few months later, in early 1967, the same lineup, plus Derek Bailey on amplified guitar, recorded a reworked version of the soundtrack in three sequences, plus a suite called "Seeing Sounds & Hearing Colours," both intended for an LP release that never materialized. Watts plays some beautiful flute on "Withdrawal Sequence 2." Actually, the whole CD contains fantastic free music, almost completely detached from jazz -- very atmospheric, delicate, and highly organic with a strong sense of discovery. These are the earliest available recordings by Barry Guy and Evan Parker (even though the latter doesn't play much), and one of Bailey's earliest sessions playing free music (even though he is buried in the mix). Historical significance notwithstanding, Withdrawal is simply a great album, still very relevant and "new" today. François Couture    Tracklist :
Credits :
Double Bass, Piano – Barry Guy
Drums, Cymbal [Cymbals], Percussion, Composed By – John Stevens
Guitar [Amplified] – Derek Bailey (tracks: 5 to 11)
Oboe, Alto Saxophone, Flute, Voice, Percussion – Trevor Watts
Soprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Percussion – Evan Parker
Trombone, Percussion – Paul Rutherford
Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Percussion – Kenny Wheeler

DAVID LIEBMAN | MARC COPLAND — Bookends (2002) 2CD | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The title of this CD might imply that saxophonist Dave Liebman and pianist Marc Copland signify two jazz musicians who share similar visions and musical aspirations. The adage that like minds think along parallel paths serves as an underlying condition for the artists' third collaboration for the Switzerland-based hatOLOGY record label. This time, the instrumentalists work as a duo, performing a few originals amid modern jazz standards. They wittily reconfigure Herbie Hancock's classic "Maiden Voyage," where the duo unassumingly sneaks the primary theme into the grand scheme of things. With this two-CD set, the musicians glide through a sequence of meticulously enacted improvisations amid a delightful and generally probing rendition of Miles Davis' "Blue in Green," among other familiar works. Nonetheless, the artists' synergy seemingly sparks creativity here. Some of these pieces are marked by freely organized tradeoffs, to coincide with wistful melodies and bluesy dreamscapes. Sure, they turn up the heat on occasion, yet it is all about intuitive responses, delicately enacted frameworks, and memorable melodies, as they tend to collapse the history of modern jazz into a uniformly arranged production that most assuredly emanates from the heart. Strongly recommended. Glenn Astarita   Tracklist :
Credits :
Piano – Marc Copland
Soprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – David Liebman

LOUIS MOHOLO-MOHOLO DUETS WITH MARILYN CRISPELL — Sibanye (We Are One) (2008) FLAC (tracks+.cue) lossless

Sibanye/We Are One is the title of an album recorded at An die Musik Live in Baltimore, Maryland on June 30, 2007. Released the following year on the Intakt label, it was warmly received and has been critically acclaimed ever since. For their first-ever collaborative engagement, the Marilyn Crispell/Louis Moholo-Moholo duo chose a 100-percent improvisational approach, rooted within each individual's life-long commitment to the art and discipline of shared creative exploration. Moholo, a South African drummer who first gained international fame for his work with Johnny Dyani and Dudu Pukwana, was perfectly suited for interaction with Crispell, a Philadelphia-born pianist who is admired and respected as one of the most astute and highly evolved creative musicians of her generation. Precedents for the sounds that resulted from her historic meeting with Moholo may be found among her duets with Gerry Hemingway and her periodic pairings with Anthony Braxton. Anyone who has witnessed her live one-on-one interaction with another artist will recall how she maintains friendly and highly focused eye contact. Photographic evidence suggests this tendency as one explanation for the subtlety and sensitivity that characterized her mutually respectful communion with Louis Moholo-Moholo on that summer day in Baltimore. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :
1    Improvise, Don't Compromise    12:40
2    Moment Of Truth    7:08
3    Journey    11:49
4    Soze (Never)    6:28
5    Phendula (Reply)    7:07
6    Reflect    7:21
7    Sibanye (We Are One)    6:18
Credits :
Drums – Louis Moholo-Moholo
Piano – Marilyn Crispell

WEIRD LITTLE BOY — Weird Little Boy (1998) APE (image+.cue), lossless

 From the first ten seconds of this album, you know exactly where jazz masochist John Zorn is heading with Weird Little Boy, one of his many noise projects with Mr. Bungle singer Mike Patton. A Phil Spector-style drum intro immediately leads into some hissing noise, with squeaks and pops provided by Zorn's saxophone. From this point on, nothing is sacred sonically. These are not songs so much as pieces of sound, and this is how the artist intended it to be. The music slides from casual guitar jamming (courtesy of Patton's partner in crime Trey Spruance) to ear-splitting noise to the sound of someone choking to cartoon sound effects in a matter of a minute. The album is more of an experience than anything, and this is driven home by the wonderful packaging (which includes a booklet filled with poetry, text, and art). This is not for fans of jazz, or fans of anything really. This is a brutal noise experience for listeners interested in how far sonic technology can really be stretched and twisted. It is also very captivating music, and given time it can really sustain interest. Just make sure to listen to it when you have time to digest the whole package. Bradley Torreano
Tracklist :
[1]    (10:07)
1.1    Two Weeks On A Morphine Drip    
1.2    New Dirt And New Flies    
1.3    Lorne Greenlies    
[2]    (8:05)
2.1    If The Gun Has A Mind    
2.2    Redeye    
2.3    Worms And Shit    
3    Totally Poobied    2:14
4    Weird Little Boy    1:39
5    Lungfull Of Water    7:51
6    Seance    3:04
7    When Blood Fills A Cylinder    2:59
8    Waiting    1:46
9    Blindness    4:04
Credits :
Chris Cochrane - Guitar
Mike Patton - Drums, Vocals
Trey Spruance - Guitars, Keyboards, Drums
William Winant - Percussion
John Zorn - Alto, Samplers, Keyboards
Dennis Cooper - Text

AKI TAKASE | SILKE EBERHARD — Ornette Coleman Anthology (2006) 2CD | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
Credits :
Alto Saxophone, Clarinet, Bass Clarinet – Silke Eberhard
Piano – Aki Takase